Yesterday cycled to two museums in Chiang Mai which on the map looked easy enough but typically turned out to be considerably more difficult. Nevertheless it was a great adventure in the rain and I found them in the end and they were really good.
Took the bus to Pai (pronounced "pie" by travellers and "bye" by locals) and arrived at 8pm. There are only 2 streets so it wasn't hard to find a place to stay. Ended up at Charlie's House which is basic but clean and at 3 pounds a night I'm not complaining. The guy in the room next door is working for the army in Kuwait so I'm definately safe.
Went for dinner but cheated and bought a chicken and cheese sandwich with chips :) Met Roy from Israel who was good company and then went for an early night.
Today was a really really good day. Had my one and only lie in of the holiday and didn't wake up until 11.30! Think I really needed to catch up on some sleep and now I feel really refreshed and ready for the next few days. Had brunch and then hired a bike and made up for my lazy start with a 17km bike ride. Cycled through gorgeous mountain scenery and sometimes was the only person on the road. Stopped half way at the hot springs for a bath which was SO relaxing but really really hot. Cycled home past Pai Canyon and through some villages and only got rained on in the last 5 mins. Going to have my hair cut now as it's only 3 pounds and I feel I need a change.
Tomorrow I am going to Soppong where I have arranged a homestay in a tiny little village. It's run by 2 Canadians and is meant to be one of the least tourist homestays you can do so I'm really looking forward to it. Then I'm going to see the caves in Soppong which are the largest in Asia. Then back to Pai and onto Chiang Mai and back to Bangkok!
Happy and chilled after my day in Pai :) Lots of love xx
